Three years after becoming kings of Europe, only one of England's brilliant Under 17 team, Everton's Ross Barkley, is playing regularly in the Premier League. So, where did it all go wrong for the golden boys?

The one who has made it

Ross Barkley, Everton

A broken leg at 16 and respiratory problems as he matured hampered Barkley’s progress and David Moyes sent him on loan to Sheffield Wednesday last season. But Barkley has put on muscle, scored a spectacular goal against Norwich on the opening day of the season and impressed on his full England debut earlier this month.

How has he done it?

Besides natural talent, Barkley also has the inner belief to force his way into an Everton team packed with internationals. And, in Martinez, he has found a manager who is prepared to give youth a chance.

He is held up as the exception that proves the rule: a gifted teenage English footballer from a generation that otherwise trails badly behind Spain and Germany in mastering the technical skills of the game. But Ross Barkley, Everton's 19-year-old midfield powerhouse, does not see it that way. He insists England's teenagers are as talented as any in Europe - they just have to be given their chance to show it.

'I've been through the youth system and I don't agree when people say there aren't as many technical players in England as in Spain,' says Barkley, who will be named this week in Roy Hodgson's squad for the key World Cup qualifying games against Montenegro and Poland.

'I played against Spain when England won the European Under-17 Championship final and we were just as good technically. Now, having been around all the England squads, I would say our talent is as good as the Germans and Spanish.'

Struggle: Connor Wickham has made just nine Premier League starts in 27 months.

The ones held back

Jack Butland, Stoke

He may be England's youngest ever full international goalkeeper but Butland is only third choice at Premier League Stoke City after his £3.5m move from Birmingham in January. And last week, in a bid for first-team football, he went on loan to Championship side Barnsley.

What's held him back? Part of the deal when he joined Stoke was that he would be loaned back to Birmingham for the rest of last season. Now, with Stoke under new management, he finds his career there blocked by Bosnian Asmir Begovic and Dane Thomas Sorensen.

Bruno Pilatos, Darlington

Joined Middlesbrough at 10 and stayed until last season, when he moved to non-league Darlington. Angolan born, the defender has represented England at several age levels.

What's held him back? Unable to break into the Middlesbrough first team despite being tipped as a future star when he signed a fouryear contract in 2010. When injury caused him to miss games at the start of last season, he left by mutual consent in January.

Connor Wickham, Sunderland

Scored the winning goal against Spain to make England Under-17 European champions. Scouted by every big Premier League club before Sunderland splashed out £8million to buy him from Ipswich. But Wickham-mania has failed to produce a glittering senior career and the striker has made just nine Premier League starts in 27 months.

What's held him back? Struggled to deal with the hype after big moves to Arsenal, Liverpool, Spurs and Chelsea all failed to materialise. Seemed to fall out of favour with the arrival of Martin O'Neill as manager and had a short loan spell at Sheffield Wednesday. His only Premier League goal came against Aston Villa in October 2011.

Luke Garbutt, Everton

Featured in this summer's Under-20s World Cup in Turkey but progress has been harder at club level. Now on loan at League One Colchester. Yet to play in the Premier League for Everton.

What's held him back? Leighton Baines is stiff competition at leftback and Dutchman Bryan Oviedo has been signed as cover. Only senior appearance for Everton came as a sub in last season's Capital One Cup win against Orient.

Nathaniel Chalobah, Chelsea

England under-21 international has signed a bumper new contract at Chelsea but admits he needs another Championship loan spell to get regular games.

What's held him back? Impressed Jose Mourinho in pre-season but when the club signed Schurrle, Van Ginkel and Willian to add to a midfield roster of Lampard, Essien, Mikel, Oscar, Hazard and Mata, his opportunities became extremely limited.

Andre Wisdom, Liverpool

The current England Under-21 captain joined Liverpool from Bradford in 2008, starred in their Youth Cup triumph and has started in 13 Premier League games.

What's held him back? Liverpool's roster of international defenders. As if Glen Johnson, Martin Kelly, Martin Skrtel and Daniel Agger weren't enough, manager Brendan Rodgers signed Kolo Toure and Mamadou Sakho in the summer transfer window.

Conor Coady, Liverpool

Made two first-team appearances for Liverpool and captained England at Under-20s World Cup. But with his opportunities limited at Anfield, Coady signed for League One Sheffield United on loan until January.

What's held him back? Liverpool signings Jordan Henderson and Joe Allen, who cost a combined £33m, are key obstacles to Coady's ambitions to play alongside Steven Gerrard in Brendan Rodgers' midfield.

Will Keane, Manchester United

Scored a hat-trick against Chelsea as United went on to win the 2010-11 Youth Cup, then made just one appearance for United's first team in 2011. Missed last season with a knee-ligament injury picked up on England Under-19s duty.

What's held him back? Still rated one of United's most promising youngsters but injury cost him a vital season. Back in United's under-21 side and beginning to regain his sharpness.

Josh McEachran, Chelsea

Midfielder once tipped for the top, now on loan at Watford, having been out to Swansea and Middlesbrough in previous seasons.

What's held him back? With a celebrity girlfriend (Coronation Street star Brooke Vincent) and a £60,000 Range Rover before he had even passed his driving test, critics said he was part of the too-much-too-soon generation. But he has also has suffered from competition for places at Chelsea.

Benik Afobe, Arsenal

Fast-tracked into Arsenal reserves at 16 but hasn't taken the next step up to the first team. Loan spells at Championship clubs Bolton and Millwall, where he suffered a knee injury, didn't work out last season.

What's held him back? Found it hard to adapt to rough-and-tumble of pressurised Championship football. Injury didn't help, and now Arsene Wenger has signed Yaya Sanogo from France as his next young Gunner.

Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA's
director of football development, certainly harboured high hopes for
Barkley and his under-17 team-mates. On the eve of their European final
against Spain, Sir Trevor had praised them as 'the best passing group
we've had. You could put them in any shirt and you wouldn't know which
European country they were from'.

But Brooking was under no illusions about the problems the teenagers
would face to establish themselves with the country's top clubs. 'Our
biggest challenge is where are they going to play their first-team
football in the next few years?' he asked.

Barkley is the only one of that European Championship-winning side to
cement his place in the Premier League and the concern that the
teenagers he helped to European glory are slipping into the football
void as a wasted generation is not lost on Football Association chairman
Greg Dyke.

One of his first acts on taking the
job was to launch a commission to increase the number of young
Englishmen capable of playing in the top flight and at international
level.

The issue was highlighted again last week when goalkeeper Jack
Butland, signed by Premier League Stoke City for £3.5million in January
but unable to get a place even on the bench this season, agreed to move
on loan to Championship side Barnsley in a bid to get regular first-team
football.

Butland has won
a full international cap, becoming the youngest ever England goalkeeper
at the age of 19 years and 158 days when he played against Italy 13
months ago. But his move to Stoke was followed by a change of management
at the club - Mark Hughes replacing Tony Pulis - and Butland now finds
himself third choice behind a Bosnian and a Dane.

Others
from Barkley's class of 2010 have suffered disappointment as their
careers have stalled. Josh McEachran and Nathaniel Chalobah have been
repeatedly sent out on loan to Championship clubs by Chelsea, striker
Connor Wickham, star man from three years ago, has struggled at
Sunderland, and forward Benik Afobe has got nowhere near the Arsenal
first team.

Barkley
acknowledges that being successful at 17 does not mean young players can
expect everything to fall into place for them at the highest level.
'You have to be mentally tough. You have to work hard and not give up,'
he said.

'You've also got to have a manager who believes in you. When you're not getting that, some players can't take it. But it's about being strong. It's in my genes to be like that.' Ray Wilkins, who played for Chelsea in the top flight at 17 and was captain a year later, believes part of the problem lies in the attitude of young players.

'Technically, some of the young men in the academies are as good as it gets,' said Wilkins. 'But something goes slightly wrong when they get to a certain age. Is it that burning desire? Or is that situation where they feel they're not getting a chance so they don't work as hard? If you're not getting a chance, work doubly hard.

'The influx of foreign players is something we have to look at but with some young players maybe things have become quite easy for them financially. They should leave the money aside and just get in the first team. All the rest will come.'

Having been sent out on loan to Sheffield Wednesday by previous Everton manager David Moyes, Barkley has been given a first-team berth this season by Roberto Martinez. 'Players my age need to get chances,' said Barkley.

'Years ago, players used to get more opportunities. The statistics show the number of English players in first teams is dropping. A lot are just still in the academies when they should have been pushed on by now.'

He accepts that the pressure for
success at the top level of English football is part of the problem.
Managers may want to give younger players a chance but fear the
consequences of failure.

'There is a lot to play for in the Premier
League and it's hard to play youngsters. The clubs think about what
happens when players make mistakes. But if you instil confidence into
players, they can show their abilities.'

Barkley's attitude and will to win meant he was always rated likelier
to succeed among the coaches at Goodison Park than Jack Rodwell, another
promising Everton graduate who was picked up by Manchester City for
£15m.

That belief was rewarded when Barkley made an impressive England
debut as a substitute against Moldova at Wembley earlier this month.
Such is Hodgson's belief in him, he is a genuine contender for a
starting place in this summer's World Cup in Rio, should England get
there.

If anything
happened to Frank Lampard or Jack Wilshere, the England manager will
consider him strongly for the games against Montenegro and Poland which
will determine whether England qualify for the finals as group winners.
Victory in both games on October 11 and 15 would guarantee it.

Barkley believes recovering from a career-threatening broken leg at 16
hardened him. 'It was broken in three places, the bone on the side and
the shinbone in two places. They weren't clean breaks, it was shattered,
which made it even worse,' said Barkley.

His doctor warned he might not play again. 'It was the worst I've ever
felt,' said Barkley. 'But my mum said everything happens for a reason
and tried to be positive. I believe that now. I believe I broke my leg
and it made me a stronger person. It has made me want to play for
Everton even more because I had to wait for even longer to be involved
with the first team. It kept me out for seven months until I could
start training again and then another two months until my first game. It
felt like a long time.'

Barkley's commitment in the centre of the park and physical power are
reminiscent of a young Steven Gerrard. So, too, is some of his shooting,
and he scored a spectacular goal at Norwich on the opening day of the
season.

Waiting: Jack Butland is only third choice at Stoke City

Star appeal: Everton's Ross Barkley

With Gerrard, Lampard, Michael Carrick and Wilshere available to Hodgson, it will not be easy for Barkley to find a starting position for his country. But England under-21 manager Gareth Southgate had to do without the Everton player last time because Hodgson wanted him in the senior squad, and it is a pattern that is set to be repeated.

Barkley promises that success coming so early will not spoil his appetite and desire for the game. 'I'm not over the top. I keep myself simple,' he said. 'You get some players who are very flashy, but I'm not that type of person. I do whatever a normal teenager does. I play PlayStation, go to my mates'. Just the normal stuff.'

Except in this day and age being English and a Premier League starter at 19 is not normal. More's the pity for Hodgson.

How the game can help young stars

Feeder clubs Tried-and-tested at Barcelona and Real Madrid, where emerging talents play for Barcelona B or Real Madrid Castilla in Spanish equivalent of the Championship. Premier League clubs do loan young players but in the Spanish system the parent clubs still control the training and playing style. Critics fear part of English football identity would be lost in opening the Championship to feeder clubs.

Quotas

Illegal under EU law so, you might think, a non-starter. But the principle of having a minimum of eight 'homegrown' players in 25-man Premier League squad has been established because it does not discriminate on nationality. Extending this rule to a minimum of 12 could help more English players get a game.

Work Permits

Tightening the work-permit rules would make no difference to footballers from within the European Union but would affect players such as Chelsea's Willian. The Brazilian failed to meet the criterion of having played in 75 per cent of his country's competitive internationals in the past two years but was allowed in on appeal. Tightening up rules for non-EU players might force clubs to rely on academy-trained players.

Incentives

Premier League TV funds of £5.5billion could pay for clubs to get a £500,000 bonus for every Engiish player having more than 10 full league games in a season. Given that the difference between finishing 10th or 12th this season will be around £3million in prizemoney, clubs are unlikely to throw in youngsters just to pick up the cash; obtaining the highest possible finishing position will always be more lucrative.

MORE MAT CHES

The Premier League already run an Under-21 league but this season have introduced two divisions of 11 with promotion and relegation. The idea is to increase the numbers of competitive games for young players. UEFA have also introduced an Under-19 tournament for Champions League clubs.